Feeling comfortable in your own skin comes naturally for some people. For others like myself, it takes years of effort to like what we see when we look in the mirror. Whether it’s from hurtful words others have cut us with in the past or from our own harsh critiques, we all see our bodies differently and learn to live with the criticism we take from ourselves and others. Now, since this is the beauty section, I want to talk specifically about make-up and why people choose to wear or not wear it.
First of all, make-up is a totally personal choice; no one should put someone else down because of their choice in wanting to wear cosmetics. Honestly, I walk around my city, and I hear whispers from younger girls and older women and seemingly mature men as they point and give disapproving looks in my general direction just because I decided to put on red lipstick that morning. 
The other day, my friend and I were at Disneyland waiting in line for the haunted mansion when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw two young girls staring at her and laughing. My friend and I often wear bright colored lipstick, but today she chose a black lipstick that, in my opinion, looked incredible on her. Yes, black lipstick can be shocking at times, but it’s not an uncommon thing to see in this day and age (especially in high fashion). Anyway, no matter what people choose to wear, it’s what they want, and to judge them for it is just silly and immature.
Personally, wearing make-up is a big part of me; if I want to change something about my face, I have the means to do that. If I want to look how I feel, I can do that. If I want to feel prettier, make-up helps me to get there. I’m not saying that make-up makes me prettier; I’m saying that the feeling that I can control how my face is going to turn out on a specific day is freeing and exciting. It’s an art, and practice makes perfect.
On the opposite spectrum, we have people who choose to not wear any make-up. When I first started wearing make-up, I got scared that if I wore it too much, I wouldn’t like my natural face and would have to wear make-up instead of just wanting to; and, for a while that was true. I didn’t want to look in the mirror or leave the house if I didn’t have any make-up on. I became hyper-aware of people looking at me and imagined that everyone thought I was sleep deprived or sick. To say the least, it was not a good time, and I’m glad that period of my life and that way of thinking has passed.
To people who wear no make-up: That’s awesome! You get to rub your face without getting black stuff everywhere, and you don’t have to worry about whether your lipstick is smudged or faded or that your eyeliner is crooked! Sometimes I find myself jealous of my friends that don’t wear make-up because they are more comfortable with their face than I am with mine. Additionally, having a completely natural face is super liberating and healthy for your skin, but people will try to force their opinions on you all the same: “You would look so pretty if you tried…” “Why can’t you wear lipstick or something?” “You look tired; you should put some make-up on.” These are all things I have actually heard said in real life. So if you ever hear something like that, remember: make-up isn’t for everyone, and it doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to put something on your face to be beautiful.
Embrace your face, including the one you were born with and the one you made up.